Endocyte, Inc. ECYT reported a fourth-quarter 2015 loss of 23 cents per share, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 27 cents but wider than the year-ago loss of 19 cents.
The company earned collaboration revenues of $12,000 in the reported period, flat year over year.
The Quarter in Detail
Research and development (R&D) expenses were $6.4 million, up 59.7% year over year. The increase was driven by higher expenses related to the EC1456 and EC1169 dose-escalation trials.
General and administrative expenses were down 16% to $4.2 million due to a reduction in legal and professional fees in the fourth quarter of 2015.
2015 Results
Full-year loss of 98 cents per share was narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 1.02.
2016 Outlook
Endocyte projects cash balance to be between $125 million and $130 million at the end of 2016. The company expects spending to be higher in the second half of 2016 than the first half as the trials for EC1456 and EC1169 are expanded once their maximum-tolerated doses have been determined.
Pipeline Update
Once the dose-escalation studies are finished, Endocyte will proceed to evaluate EC1456 as monotherapy as well as a combination treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and ovarian cancer among others. The company is considering two schedules for the candidate. With the determination of the maximum-tolerated dose, the company will evaluate these schedules in up to 40 second-line NSCLC patients selected by EC20 imaging with all FR-positive disease. It expects single-agent efficacy data in NSCLC before year-end 2016.
Meanwhile, after determining the maximum tolerated dose of EC1169, the candidate will be evaluated as a single-agent therapy in advanced prostate cancer patients previously treated with hormone therapy. Endocyte expects single-agent efficacy data in prostate cancer in late 2016 or 2017.
Patient enrolment is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2016. The expansion phase of the trials will focus first on NSCLC patients and then on EC1169 for prostate cancer.
Our Take
Endocyte’s narrower-than-expected fourth-quarter loss as well as its efforts on pipeline development are encouraging. 2016 is going to be a data rich year for Endocyte and we expect invetsor focus on pipeline updates from the company.
Endocyte carries a Zack Rank #2 (Buy). Other well placed stocks in the health care sector are Corcept Therapeutics CORT, Arqule Inc. ARQL, and Celgene Corporation CELG. Each of the stocks sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
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